Check-rein holder for harness



J. W. COOPER. Check-Rein Holder for Harness.

No. 226,979. Patented April 21. I880.

mfiwaea I I v NPEIERS, FHOTO-LITMOGRAPMER, WASHINGTON. D c,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN W. COOPER, OF NEW CASTLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

CHECK-REIN HOL DER FOR HARNESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 226,979, dated April27, 1880.

Application filed February 19, 1880.

To all whom it may concern I Be it known that I, JOHN W. COOPER, acitizen of the United States, residing at New Castle, in the county ofLawrence and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Uheck-Rein Holders for Harness; and I do hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact de-- v a device by which ahorse may be reined up or unreined by the driver without his getting outof the vehicle.

It consists in two interlocking pawls or levers placed in the dome onthe saddle or backstrap of the harness, and in a sliding plate orratchet-bar of peculiar form, to which the check-rein and draw-strap areattached, and which is provided with shoulders which look or unlock thedevice, as will hereinafter be more fully explained and pointed out inthe claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a harness-saddle havingmy device applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the dome,showing the device looked, as when the horse is reined up. Fig. 3 is thesame with the check-rein released, and Figs. 4. and 5 are detail views.

a is the harness-saddle, on which is placed the cylindrical dome orhollow casing b. The dome b is provided with a suitable screwshank, b,by which it may be readily attached to any ordinary harness-saddle, andit is provided with front and rear openings, b N, arranged opposite eachother, and at its under or lower side, as shown.

lVithin the casing b, 1 place a pawl, c, which is hinged to the innerperiphery thereof and over the front opening, W, as shown in Figs. 2 and3. It is made long enough to reach nearly to the rear opening, b and sothat its end 0 will engage and hold the sliding ratchet-bar, hereinafterdescribed, or will turn up inside of the casing, as shown in Fig. 3.

To make the bar drop more readily when released, as hereinafterdescribed, I arrange a spring, 0 which bears on its upper side andforces it downward. The pawl c is slightly curved downward from itshinged end, so that it can be more readily lifted by the lever d.

The lever d is formed with a central slot, d, through which the pawl 0passes. It is pivoted within the casing or dome b above and in rear ofthe pivoted end of the pawl. It has a swinging motion to and fro on itspivot, and it is so arranged that when turned to the rear it lifts andretains the pawl in the elevated position shown in Fig. 25, and whenturned forward it permits the pawl to drop down, as shown in Fig. 2.

The pawl has a small notch, c, which engages on a lip or edge, (1 on thelever d at the lower end of the slot d. This notch is employed to givegreater security, though ordinarily the friction between the lever d andpawl c is sufficient to hold the latter up, as described.

e is the sliding ratchet-plate and rein-holder. It is provided withsuitable means, as the loops 0 c or hook 6 on its forward end forholding the check-rein, and on its rear end v or shank e it is providedwith a strap, f.

On the upper side of the shank 6 there are formed the shoulders e 0 Theshoulder c is formed so that it will pass into opening b and entirelythrough the dome below, and clear of the point of the lever d, and underthe end of the pawl c. The shoulder c enters the opening b engages theend (1 of the lever d, which prevents it from going entirely through thecasing and out at the opening b The operation of the device is asfollows: The check-rein is fastened to the hook c or in the loops 6 c.The strap j is then put through the dome, as shown in Fig. 1, and isbuckled to another strap, g, which extends to the driver in the buggy.By drawing on the straps g f the end of the plate 0 is drawn into theeasing, and the shoulder 0 passes under and past the en d of the pawl,which drops automatically behind the said shoulder, as shown in Fig. 2,and locks the plate in the dome, and thus reins up the horse.

To unrein the horse the plate 0 is drawn by the draw-strap until theshoulder a enters the dome, engages the end (1 of the lever d and.

pushes it back till it lifts the pawl into the position shown in Fig. 3.The pawl is locked in this position by the lever d.

By releasing the draw-strap the sliding plate a will be drawn forward bythe horse, the shoulder a clears the end of the pawl c and strikes theend d? of the lever d, and throws the latter into the position shown inFig. 2. The end 0 of the pawl drops to the rear of the shoulder 0 Inorder to limit the extent to which the plate 6 can be drawn to the rearand prevent too great strain being made upon the lower end of the levercl by the shoulder 6 I provide a small curved stop-plate, h, which hasits forward end secured to the harness-saddle by the stem or pin 1) ofthe dome b.

The rear end of the plate It is curved upward, and is provided with asmall slot, h, through which the strap f is put, and which is arrangedin line with the openings b and at such a distance from the dome thatwhen the shoulder 6 has lifted and caused the lever 61 and pawl c tolock, as hereinbefore described, the rear end of the plate h willprevent the further rear movement of the said plate 0.

Thestrap g, for convenience, isinsertedin the rim k, which is formed toreceive it, as shown. It is thus held and preserved, and may be buckledonto the strap f when the horse is hitched to the vehicle, and when theanimal is unhitched it is folded, tied up, and remains with the reins.The end of the strap 9 next the vehicle passes out of the rim It, sothat it can be readily taken hold of by the driver and drawn, for thepurposes hereinbefore explained.

Instead of having the shoulders e 0 formed on a stiff shank, asdescribed, they may be formed separately, and so that they can be fixedon the strap f. The end of the strap in this construction could beprovided with a snap-hook or other suitable device for holding thecheck-rein. I prefer to form the shoulders on the stiff bar a, asdescribed, as thereby more exact results are secured.

The swinging lever (I could be made without a slot, (1, by having thelip or port d to project laterally from one of the arms 01. The sidelip, 01 would extend under the pawl c, and would lift the latter justthe same as where the said lever is formed with both arms 61 d I preferto have the lever made with both arms forming the slot (1, ashereinbefore described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patcut, is-

1. In a check-rein holder, the plate 0, provided with loops 0 e andshoulders c 0 substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. The combination, with the pawl c, pivoted in the dome b and arrangedto hold the strap f, as described, of the lever d, having the lip orshoulder d projecting under the pawl c, and the strap f, provided withmeans for holding the check-rein, and having the shoulders e 0substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

3. In a check-rein holder, the combination, with pawl c, of theautomatic tripping-lever d,

arranged to operate substantially as set forth.

